Koops Mill Mews, Bermondsey, London, SE1

Client: AK & AK Property Ltd

Located within sight of The Shard, this £3M mixed-use development lies within a grounds of a Grade II former tannery mill and warehousing complex. JGP provided structural services, including finite element ground settlement analysis and overnight condition survey of the Underground Jubilee Line before designing a foundation scheme approved by London Underground.

The former tannery mill and warehousing complex then known as Neckinger Mills was constructed in 1864 for Bevingtons and Sons, one of the foremost tanneries to occupy the Bermondsey area in the C19. The site originally housed tanning pits that processing animal skins for leather. Prior to being acquired by the client the site was occupied by a lightweight single storey prefabricated commercial building.

Foundations to the building were of particular interest given the London Underground Jubilee Line, extended in 1994, lies directly below at a depth of approximately 26m to the crown of the tube. The multi-span brick arched structure of the Greenwich railway viaduct constructed in 1838 also passes with metres of the five-storey building to the south west.

JGP carried out a finite element ground settlement analysis and an overnight condition survey of the London Underground Jubilee Line structure before ruling out a piled design in favour of 1.5m deep reinforced concrete wide span strip footings to the approval of London Underground. These were partially cantilevered so as not to impart additional loads to the railway brick arch footings or their bearing strata to the approval of Network Rail’s engineering team.

The use of a braced steel frame, lightweight Metsec SFS (Structural Framing System) to the upper levels precast hollowcore planks to the floors helped reduce loads to foundation.